Splash yarn



A. J. M KAY March 26, 1968 SPLASH YARN Filed Sept. 2. 1966 INVENTOR 2 4 1 .04 (.1; u? J m E w( M Q United States Patent Ofifice 3,3 74,506 Patented Mar. 26, 1968 3,374,506 SPLASH YARN Alden J. MacKay, Rochester, N.H., assignor to Baxter Woolen Co., Inc., East Rochester, NH., a corporation of New Hampshire Filed Sept. 2, 1966, Ser. No. 577,123 2 Claims. (Cl. 19-99) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The production of splash yarn on a carding set by subjecting the fibers on a main carding cylinder to an intermittent drawing action to elongate and reduce the section of portions of the fibers.

This invention relates to improvements in the production of irregular yarn often called splash yarn which varies in diameter in a regular pattern.

In the past such yarns have been produced on essentially conventional carding machines in which the usual cylindrical doifer roll is replaced by a non-cylindrical doffer roll. The modified roll is usually made up by removing the wire cover conventionally provided on such rolls, installing axially extending strips spaced circumferentially around the roll, and re-installing the wire on the cylinder over the strips. The size of the strips and their spacing determines the size of the splash, i.e., the degree and spacing of the irregularity in the yarn. Alternately the doifer roll may be clothed with strips of wire extending circumferentially around the roll, the strips being ground away at regular intervals.

While the yarn produced by this type of apparatus is of adequate quality, the apparatus itself has a number of disadvantages. For example, in converting a conventional carding machine for the production of splash yarn it is necessary either to remove the dotfer roll, rework it and reinstall it or to remove the roll and replace it with a previously reworked dotfer. In either case the process is costly and time consuming and involves an exceptionally long period of machine shut down. For example, it takes approximately 24 hours to clothe a doifer cylinder with wire and grind it into operating condition. Since this operation can be effected only While the roll is set in the machine such an operation inherently involves a substantial loss of production time. Even if it were possible to clothe and grind a dotfer cylinder while it is out of the card it would be necessary to purchase and maintain a spare cylinder for each type of splash yarn desired. Since the cost of each cylinder is approximately $3,000.00 and the cost of the associated equipment for grinding out of the card is also substantial, this expedient is also objectionably expensive. Further, since the doifer cylinders are large and heavy it is necessary to employ expensive equipment to move them into and out of the card. Because of the size of the rolls, the costs of the wire covering are also substantial.

With these considerations in mind it is the principal purpose and object of the present invention to provide improved apparatus for producing splash yarn which is significantly less complex and less costly than prior apparatus.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide improved apparatus for producing splash yarn which permits the conversion of conventional carding apparatus for the production of either conventional yarn or splash yarn with minimum expense and minimum loss of production time.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide improved splash yarn producing apparatus which reduces or eliminates the need for expensive, bulky, standby rolls or/ and related equipment.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide improved apparatus for producing splash yarn by the addition of relatively inexpensive, relatively small rolls to a conventional carding machine which thus permits the modification of existing conventional carding equipment for the production of splash yarn and permits utilization of conventional carding systems in essentially the normal manner without reducing the capacity of the basic system.

In obtaining these and other objects the present invention provides unique apparatus for producing splash yarn which comprises a conventional carding apparatus including the usual main cylinder and dofter cylinder but including a special relatively small splash roll, the efiiciency of which is increased by an associated stripper roll. The splash roll and the stripper roll are positioned in a region around the circumference of the main cylinder just ahead of the doifer cylinder and both the splash roll and the stripper roll occupy only otherwise wasted space.

Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the description proceeds in connection with the accompaying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic view of a carding apparatus incorporating a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the novel splash roll of the present invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1 is (except as pointed out in detail below), a conventional carding apparatus of the type now in widespread use. The carding machine includes a feed belt 20 which delivers a mat of fibrous material to feed rolls 22, thence to a tumbler roll 24 which deposits the raw material on the surface of the main cylinder 26. The tumbler is covered or clothedwith trapper type wire. As the fibrous material is carried in a counterclockwise direction around the main cylinder 26 it is successively engaged by a series of similarly clothed worker rolls 28 and stripper rolls 30'.

After the fibrous material passes the last of the worker rolls 28 it is engaged by a fancy roll 32. The surface speed of the fancy roll 32 is somewhat greater than the surface speed of the main cylinder 26. The speed differential produces a brushing action which lifts the carded fibers onto the surface of the main cylinder.

Normally, the carded material then passes to the doifer roller 34 which strips the material from the main cylinder, the material being in turn stripped from the doffer 34 by a doifer comb 36. The web is then separated into individual slivers by conventional dividing rolls not shown and the slivers are carried by tapes onto rub aprons which impart false twist to the slivers which are then Wound onto jack spools in preparation for spinning. The treatment of the web after it leaves the dolfer comb 36 is entirely conventional and the apparatus has been omitted for clarity.

In accordance with the present invention, and, contrary to prior practice, the irregularity in the yarn, which is a characteristic of splash yarn, is produced entirely independently of the doffer roll 34. For this purpose the present invention provides a splash roll indicated generally at 38 and an associated stripper roll 40. Both the splash roll 38 and the stripper roll 40 are interposed between the fancy 32 and the doifer roll 34 and thus occupy space not normally used in the apparatus. The stripper roll is clothed or covered with metallic wire of the type conventionally used for a feed or licker-in roll.

With particular reference to FIGURE 2, the splash roll 38 comprises a cylinder 42 covered with clothing comprising a fabric sheet 44 carrying sets of wires 46.

splash roll.

The wires are preferably of the form of napper type wire 'in which the wires are slightly longer and the points are set at a sharper angle than. in regular card wire. It will 7 'be noted that the wire is stripped from thefabric'at regular intervals around the circumference of the splash roller to form groups of wire separated by blank spaces 48, each of which extends the full length of the splash roll. The circumferential width of the wire groups 46 and of the spaces 48 depends on the length of the desired V splash.

In operationpall of the rolls are driven in the direction 7 indicated by conventional drive means preferably chain and sprocket drives, which have been omitted for clarity.

' eter of 7 has a surface speed of only 51 feet per minute.

Therefore, when the wires of the splash roll engage with V the Wires of the main cylinder, fiber is deposited onto 7 the 'splash roll. This is done at intermittent regular intervals as the wire of the splash roll is not engaged with the main cylinder wire at the blank spaces 48. The fiber engaged by the splash roll38 then passes around the splash roll, then on to the stripper roll 40 and is returned to the main cylinder.

The splash is effected because the fibrous mat is drawn out and thinner between the Wire groups 46 on'the In a typical case the main cylinder will have a diameter of five feet, the dotfer will have a diameter of approximately three feet, and splash roll will have a diameter of'approximately seven inches. The stripper roll is relatively small and will have a diameter of less than three inches.

Thus, the splash and stripper rolls such small size that they may be handled readily'and can be clothed and ground on standard bench apparatus. The cost of the splash roll is less than $200.00 and the 'cost of the associated stripper is approximately $75.00

providing a total cost less than one-tenth of the cost of the much larger dofier cylinder. A further cost eduction is achieved because of the use of a relatively small amount of wire clothing on the small splash cylinder. For example, the stripper and worker rolls can be clothed for about $70.00 as compared to a cost of $300.00 to clothe a doffer cylinder. Most importantly, since the stripper and splash rolls can be prepared on bench apparatus while the carding machine is in operation it is necessary to shut down the main machine only long enough to permit installation of the two rolls. Actual experience has shown that this operation takes about half an hour whereas the installation of the modified dofierroll requires about 24 hours. Further, vthe splash roll effectively utilizes the entire capacity of the carding machine and the fibrous web delivered by the apparatus is continuous from side to side which permits further handling of the web by a tape condenser which is now standard'in the industry. 7

The invention may be embodied in other specific teristics thereof. The present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore 'intended to. be embraced therein. a

What is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is: V

' 1. Apparatus for producing splash yarn comprising a carding set including a main cylinder, a series of worker rolls spaced around the circumference of said main cylinder, and a cylindrical doffer roll, a cylindrical splash roll positioned opposite a portion of the circumference of said main cylinder between said worker rolls and said dotfer roll, said splash roll being at least as long as said main cylinder, a wire cloth covering said roll, said cloth having alternate circumferentially spaced wire covered areas and blank spaces around its periphery, said areas and said spaces extending the full length of said splash roll and parallel to the axis of said splash roll, said wire covered areas of said splash roll engaging spaced portions of a mat of material on said maincylinder before it reaches said dofler roll to reduce the cross section of the fibers of said mat at regular intervals to. 5 thereby produce an irregularity in said yarn, and means to drive each of said rolls, said drive means being effective to drive said splash roll with a surface speed substan- 38 and are of tially less than the surface speed of said main cylinder;

' 2. The combination according to claim 1 together with a stripper roll positioned adjacent said splash roll to strip mat from said splash roll.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,388,030 10/1945 Beaudoin 19--106 2,703,439 3/1955 Dole et a1. 19-106 3,005,239 10/1961 Worley ..19-106 7 FOREIGN PATENTS 96,167 1898 Germany. 104,938 1899 Germany.

MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner. I. C. WADDEY, Assistant Examiner.

forms without departing from the spirit or essential charac- V 

